Five Baby Orangutans Found In Odisha Forest, Far From Their Natural Habitat; Smuggling Suspected

Five young orangutans were rescued from a forest area in Odisha’s Balasore district during a routine patrol on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, raising questions over how the non-native animals reached India. The Odisha Forest Department found the apes abandoned in a casuarina plantation in the Udayapur-Talsari forest area of the Jaleswar Range.

According to The Hindu, the rescued orangutans are aged between six months and one year and comprise three males and two females. Regional Chief Conservator of Forests Prakash Chand Gogineni also confirmed that all five animals had been rescued.

Five Orangutans Found During Routine Patrol

Forest staff discovered the young animals while patrolling the Udayapur section of the Jaleswar Range on Tuesday.

Speaking to The Hindu, Gogineni said, “We have rescued all of them. Of the five, three are male, and two are female.”

Balasore DFO Indalkar Pratik Prakash told ANI that the orangutans were small and not moving much when they were found, but were active and were provided with food before being taken to the forest section office.

Officials estimate that the animals may have been released in the plantation on Monday night or early Tuesday morning.

Orangutans Are Not Native To India

The discovery has raised concern because orangutans have no natural presence in India.

The great apes are native to the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra in Southeast Asia, where their populations are found in Indonesia and Malaysia. Three species are recognised today — the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutans.

Their restricted natural habitat makes their presence in an Odisha forest highly unusual. Officials therefore suspect that the animals were brought to the country through human intervention.

Officials Suspect Smuggling Attempt

Gogineni suspects that the animals may have been abandoned after a smuggling attempt went wrong.

“It appears to be a botched-up transit operation,” adding that the animals appeared to have been brought to the area and then abandoned.

However, officials have not yet established that the orangutans were smuggled.

Balasore DFO Indalkar Pratik Prakash told ANI that smuggling remains a possibility, but there is currently no conclusive evidence. He said the animals could not have reached Odisha naturally from their Southeast Asian habitat, pointing towards possible human involvement.

Probe Under Wildlife Protection Act

Officials are investigating how the five orangutans entered India and who may have transported and abandoned them.

Gogineni said the department currently has no leads about the point of entry along the coast. A case is being registered under the Wildlife Protection Act, while the investigation continues.

Odisha Forest and Environment Minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia has also sent a separate team to the Badapai–Ranakatha area to establish how the animals reached the region and identify anyone who may have been involved.

Orangutans Shifted To Nandankanan

The rescued orangutans showed no visible injuries and are currently safe. They have been shifted to Nandankanan Zoological Park for a detailed medical examination and further care.

The Forest and Wildlife Department has also alerted its coastal divisions and asked officials to check for any other orangutans that may have been abandoned nearby.

The ongoing investigation will determine how the five young apes reached Odisha and whether the incident was linked to a larger wildlife trafficking operation.